SD 1 usage in UK

[king ratgre]

Hi all, several years ago I was chatting to an old boy ( Stan) whilst carrying out remedial work in his Warwickshire home. The convesations were largely around things Stan had witnessed as a school boy in Birmingham during WW2. One of his recollections was of as he put it" rows of incendiary bombs,stuck in the mud" along side Hatchford Brook following a bombing raid on Elmdon airfield. Whilst describing the bombs as incendiaries,he then drew a picture of one, which looked like an accurate depiction of an SD1 bomblet (which would have been a more appropriate device for attacking an airfield)......my query is..were SD1s known to have been used for such attacks in UK ,& are there any records of raid on Birmingham/Elmdon airstrip, as many of Stans other recollections seemed accurately valid ?

 

[LEI-13-HG]

Hi all, several years ago I was chatting to an old boy ( Stan) whilst carrying out remedial work in his Warwickshire home. The convesations were largely around things Stan had witnessed as a school boy in Birmingham during WW2. One of his recollections was of as he put it" rows of incendiary bombs,stuck in the mud" along side Hatchford Brook following a bombing raid on Elmdon airfield. Whilst describing the bombs as incendiaries,he then drew a picture of one, which looked like an accurate depiction of an SD1 bomblet (which would have been a more appropriate device for attacking an airfield)......my query is..were SD1s known to have been used for such attacks in UK ,& are there any records of raid on Birmingham/Elmdon airstrip, as many of Stans other recollections seemed accurately valid ?

SD1 was used but rarely, mainly across eastern and southern England but never in the Midlands.

See my forthcoming book: Beware Of The Butterfly Bomb: Luftwaffe Anti-Personnel Bomb Raids on Britain 1940-1945 for further details. Will publicise publication date on this forum.

 

[millsbomber]

SD1 was used but rarely, mainly across eastern and southern England but never in the Midlands.

See my forthcoming book: Beware Of The Butterfly Bomb: Luftwaffe Anti-Personnel Bomb Raids on Britain 1940-1945 for further details. Will publicise publication date on this forum.

Hi there have you included the bomb cemetery at Upminster in Essex

 

[LEI-13-HG]

Hi there have you included the bomb cemetery at Upminster in Essex

Yes, that is included and the 1956 incident there.

 

[millsbomber]

I managed to contact one of the guys who worked there through his website he had about his life, he had some pictures of him working at the site steaming out bombs, i asked him about the guy who got blown up with the SD2, he told me it was a media hype that it was a SD2, it was really a SD1.

Dave

 

[LEI-13-HG]

That's fascinating Dave - I know that the term 'butterfly bomb' is often used pretty losely by some to describe everything from SD1-SD10. That's strange because the SD1 was not so sensitive and it was officially advised that it could be handled quite safely if it failed to go off whereas not so the SD2, which would make more sense for the Upminster incident.

What's the website you refer to? Thanks.

 

[millsbomber]

im racking my brains trying to remember, this was a long time ago over 20 years i have it some where as i kept for my records, it was a first hand story that always contradicts whats written.